


OS Shirbert : Between the pages of my llife. ♥

by LibrosInTheSky



Series: Shirbert : Between the pages of my life. ♥ [1]
Category: Anne with an E (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:46:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 16,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28774797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LibrosInTheSky/pseuds/LibrosInTheSky
Summary: "Between the Pages of My Life" tells the story of Anne Shirley-Cuthbert from her unhappy childhood, her adoption and integration into Avonlea, through the beginnings of her relationship with Gilbert Blythe, to their married life.This story is written in the third person since it is a book about the life of Anne, as a legacy of a particular destiny. A legacy to put words to her wounds, to bear witness, never to forget and to give an incredible lesson in life to posterity.
Relationships: Gilbert Blythe & Anne Shirley, Shirbert - Relationship
Series: Shirbert : Between the pages of my life. ♥ [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2109669
Kudos: 4





	1. : A fire in the dark heaven  ♥

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this first part, we travel through Anne's early years, from her birth to her thirteenth birthday.  
> Song link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v = xvhQJzhzFVw

“-Everything begins, - starts to read a girl with her book in hand - in March,1883, at the same time that the cold nights of winter let the heat of the sun of life paint the gardens of a thousand flowers in colors; In a small house in Bolingbroke, a small town in Nova Scotia, Canada, a woman with red hair gave birth to a girl with large blue eyes and the same fiery hair. The parents overjoyed decided to call her Anne, not Ann as they considered it too common, Anne with a respect for French spelling. Walter and Bertha Shirley had wavered between various names: Jane, Dorothy, Mary among others. But Anne was revealed as evidence, this name had something magical, majestic because several queens had carried this same name. A wonderful name such as that girl who did not agree at all with the beauty codes imposed by society; but she seemed predestined for a special future. The couple was very happy with the arrival of their first-born child, they had always dreamt of creating their own large and united family; to forget or at least try to reduce the pain of exile and the distant perfume of his culture, of his roots, of Scotland. They have left everything after finding themselves without family, work and they wish of changing their lives. In Canada, Bertha became a teacher; her students loved her very much for her very original ways of teaching; Walter, on his side, was a farmer and above all a writer and draftsman at his wasted hours. They loved to go for walks with baby Anne, have picnics, pick flowers ... When the girl could not sleep, Bertha sang in her ear a Gaelic song handed down from generation to generation:

\- Anne, dear .. Now you have to sleep my girl. Bertha said one stormy night while the little girl yelled, murmuring.

 **_«Leanabh an àigh, a Leanabh bh 'aig Màiri, rugadh san stàball, Rìgh nan Dùl; Thàinig do' n fhàsach, dh'fhuling 'n ar n-àite; Son' iad an àireamh bhitheas dhà dlùth!; Ged a bhios leana aig rìghrean na talmhainn; A greadhnachas garbh est anabarr mùirn, 'S geàrr gus am falbh iad,' s fàsaidh iad anfhann, An àilleachd 'san dealbh a' searg 'san ùir. »_ ***

And the girl fell asleep instantly.

But it all fell apart when one rainy morning in July, the smell of death knocked on Shirley's door. An atrocious fever took Bertha and Walter in a few days, leaving Anne alone, in the darkness of life. Since the Shirleys had no relatives, and since no one wanted to pick up Anne; she was welcomed by Mrs. Thomas who used to clean the house. After the death of Mr. Thomas, the Lady and the children were taken in by relatives who did not love Anne because they were not of her blood. She was sent to the orphanage And there Anne's nightmare began:

“But, what an ugly girl! How do you make physicists like yours exist? “Someone said.

“No one is ever going to love you. You are so ugly and weird. Who could welcome you and love you? “Said another.

“With your nonsense stories and your witch hair… Not to mention your horrible spots on your face. You have made a pact with the Devil.”

“Princess Cordelia, better remove your life since you are condemned to end your entire existence as it has begun: alone.”

  
  


The same story repeated itself every day. Here more harassment Anne received, more she took refuge in writing and in the invention of stories and characters. Always the same. And nobody said anything; and more was internally damaged Anne. After a few months, she was taken back by the Hammonds and became a servant. They had just a very worn and too small dress for her, which Mrs. Hammonds threw at her in a bad way after she found it in the garbage of a neighbor of hers. She was very thin; she did not usually eat every day: in the orphanage, the children fought for food. Finding a piece of bread was considered an incredible treasure. With the Hammonds, everything depended on the day: when they had enough they gave him the remains; otherwise she had to wait until the next day if she had more luck. It was ironically funny to see this tiny creature taking care of children where some were bigger than her; the Hammonds having three sets of twins. The Lady was infectious with her, her little ones liked to make her lose her mind, and Mr. Hammonds… He was horrible, full of hatred, and he used to go out at night to come home drunk. And when he was drunk, he would go to the farm where Anne slept to beat her, the furniture, everything that he was on the way. And Anne held on.:

"But what a nefarious girl!" After everything we did for you, and so thank us ... they used to say when they were angry with Anne.

And when Mr. Hammonds died, Mrs. Hammonds didn't need her anymore; he sent her back to the orphanage, like when she threw an old wooden box in her trash. The nightmare continued. And Anne couldn't stop imagining. Protecting herself, travelling beyond the world of violence and misery that was her reality. This reality is full of death so opposite to this girl full of life. She used to hide in the attic of the orphanage to create, write, and escape harassment. As strong as she seemed, she was destroyed. Convinced that no one will ever love her, hating her red hair and freckles like never before. She who loved beautiful things so much convinced herself that she was the most disgusting creature that existed. She was looking at the trees through the window, when she was called by the orphanage director.:

“Anne Shirley”, - said that lady cold as steel and without mercy or affection for those children - “a couple of farmers from Prince Edward Island, want to adopt a girl. It seems that you correspond to all the characteristics. So tomorrow you will be leaving first thing in the morning. Here, the tickets for the trip. Now, you can go.”

Anne couldn't believe it. Did a couple want to adopt her? Someone really want to adopt her? A mixture of feelings danced inside her. The excitement of a new chapter in her life that was about to be written. She also feels fear. The fear that she is the same, that those people will fire her when they no longer need her, that they will mistreat her ... But deep down, she had the feeling that everything would change. And with a smile on her face, she took the ship from Halifax to Charlottetown on Prince Edward Island, and then the train to the town of Avonlea. She sat on a bench, admiring the view. She stayed there for a few hours, afraid that no one would come getting stronger and stronger. Until he came, his savior from him. A man of an advanced age, gray hair, blue eyes. The lord seemed surprised to see her. Maybe it was the hair or the freckles? Anne wondered. They began the journey, and the man who gave the impression of being someone quiet, very shy; He opened up with extreme ease with the girl.:

"I would love to be a tree," -Anne told him as they walked along the path- "so I wouldn't have to live with this fatality that is having red hair.That way no one would tell me anything bad; thus it could be the vestige of a history that would last centuries and centuries. He would see generations and generations of children go by, becoming adults, and finally old people before dying. I would like to be a tree.”

As she spoke, the man, Matthew Cuthbert, looked at her smiling and replying with little interactions like '' Oh '' '' Ah '' 'Yes'. Anne marveled at the sight before her. Those eternal roads full of trees, flowers, colors. An hour later, they reached Green Gables and sheinstantly fell in love with the place. This house won her heart. Her happy smile faded when Marilla Cuthbert, the lady of the place, Matthew's sister, arrived.

“Matthew! What are you doing with this girl !? We were to adopt a boy to help you with the farm, not a girl ... I can't keep her.”

Anne began to cry. She was so heartbroken and hugely disappointed. She sat on the floor, desperate, broken, in pieces. The woman, cold but deep-hearted, came to her, and spoke to her to try to explain things to her:

“I'm so sorry for this terrible mistake. But we can't take care of you. We needed a boy to help my brother with his homework, but you are only a girl and …”

“Do you think that because I'm a girl, I can't do things that only boys can do? Everything is a question of learning, teaching, will, not gender, Marilla. We are as capable as boys.”

Marila was curiously observing this little girl, with her two red braids and freckles, and inside her heart she felt something special, something that she still did not want to see clearly, that perhaps it had been there long before and it was revealed when she saw her. She made him a dress, very simple, brown, far from the puffed sleeves that Anne longed for so much. She was taken to a room, the first space of privacy that she had in her life. Her gaze fell directly on the tree by the window and she gave it the name Snow Queen. That night, she needed to cry from the disappointment, the hurt that this had created. She wondered what her morning would be like, her future. Back again to misery and violence. And every time she was nervous and couldn't sleep, a melody was sung, the melody that her late mother sang to her and that without knowing that detail or how this song crossed her path, Anne had preserved it and always calmed her down, and reassured her. . After a few minutes, Marilla came to see her so that Anne could pray for her:

“I don't know ... I don't know how to pray.” Anne said as Marilla looked at her shocked, amazed, and uneasy. “They never taught us to make prayers, but if you want it, you want it, I will learn to pray, with a smile and I would dedicate a lot of love to you.”

“Well, you have to come here. she-she explained when asking him to sit on the floor- “and put your hands up. Then, you have to thank the Eternal for his goodness, his generosity in giving us life and food; a roof and clothes.”

“I want to thank the Lord for his generosity, his goodness, for having given me a roof, life, things to eat, a new dress.” - repeated Anne -” I would like to ask you to please give me the opportunity to stay here in Green Gables, that my hair changes color, and that it will be beautiful when it grows.”

And Anne fell asleep.

She woke up the next day, and while she was making coffee, she heard Marilla tell her brother:

"I'm not sure we can keep it, Matthew." We cannot create a family; this word only evokes the bonds of blood.”

Hearing this, Anne froze. Memories of her came back to her mind. The ties of blood. That made the Thomases abandon her when her husband died, the same with the Hammonds, and her tale seemed to repeat itself again. With tears in her eyes, she gulped down the drink on the table, and ate in silence.

A few hours later she was in the car with Marilla determined to find out where her mistake came from. Anne, as usual, couldn't stop talking. And as much as Marilla, she asked him to shut up with her, she felt that this girl was about to become someone special to her. She then asked him to tell her her story. Anne, who loved to make up stories, and hating hers, was forced to tell it.She explained everything about her without really going into the details. Without knowing that this touched Marilla's heart:

“And well, I wonder when I could be …”

“Be what?”

“A kid . A beloved kid, without having to worry about adult things, that she would have someone for when she is sad, happy, to laugh, hug …”

When they arrived, they went to the home of the person responsible for adoptions, Mrs. Spencer. Marilla Cuthbert explained the situation:

“I don't understand how this error was caused. Now what are we gonna do?”

“If you don't want to keep it, I saw a few days ago a neighbor who wants to hire a girl to take care of her children. Anne has the perfect profile. Ah! There is just the lady.”

As the woman approached, Anne felt her revulsion invade her. She looked like Mrs. Hammonds. :

“Mmhh.” - said the lady very coldly - “You are very simple, so I don't think anyone would want to marry you one day, which is a good point if I hired you. Of course, you will have to respect the orders, if I see you play or do things that are not your job, you will be punished with food. Your name and age?”

“Anne Shirley, thirteen years old. “She replied to the woman with a scared look.

"Mmh, Mrs. Cuthbert if you don't want her anymore, I can take that weight off her right now."

Marilla, seeing the fear in Anne's eyes, replied:

“I never said that I wanted to leave her, I just came to clarify the error. Madam, if we don't send you the girl in a few days, she will stay with us. Goodbye.”

A big, hopeful smile spread across the little girl's face. They went back to the car and Marilla explained that she was on probation and that at the first offense she would be fired from her. Matthew welcomed them smiling and happy to see Anne again. He had hired a French boy to help him with the farm. And that caused pain in Anne, afraid that this boy would take away the possibility of staying in Green Gables. So she headed into the farm after doing her housework, and she ran into Jerry.:

“I learned that you were hired to help Matthew. But he doesn't need you, now I can help him with the farm myself. Besides, I've never seen you at the orphanage.”

“I am not an orphan, my family is very large and I have to work to help my parents.”

“All the more reason then. Because of you, there are risks that they send me back to the orphanage. It would be horrible of you to take away the slim chances that an orphan girl will finally have a family. Don't you think?”

“I don't understand what your problem is, now if you don't mind, I have things to do.”

And Jerry left her, leaving her with the word in her mouth.

The next day a neighbor came, Mrs. Rachel Lynde. She knew all the Avonlea rumors, and she had a flair for criticism, but she wasn't a bad woman either. She was shocked when she learned that the Cuthberts had adopted a girl and went to visit them to see her and put an opinion on her.:

“Oh! But what an ugly girl, Marilla!” Mrs. Lynde exclaimed as Anne timidly advanced towards her.

Hearing this, anger read in Anne's eyes, and she began to scream.

“I know that I am not the ideal of beauty, but it was not necessary to tell me. Especially coming from a fat old woman like you!”

Mrs. Lynde was offended and left directly despite Marilla's pleas. And Anne went angry and hurt in her pride to her room. Mrs. Cuthbert had asked him to apologize to Rachel. Anne thought long and hard, and after a chat with Matthew, she went to Mrs. Lynde's house and apologized in her own way, that is to say very theatrically. Rachel agreed, and told him that she had met a red-haired girl at school who over the years had seen her hair change to her brown. That sparked hope in Anne's heart.

The following afternoon, the Cuthberts were invited by their neighbors, Barrys, to meet the girl. Barrys also had two daughters, a little girl and one the same age as Anne, Diana. The two girls were instantly connected even though Anne had been reserved at first, hiding her true nature. They walked through the woods together, and it was funny to see the contrast between the two. Diana, with her pretty blue dress, her black hair and her dark gaze; Anne with her red braids, her blue eyes and her simple brown dress, their differences didn't matter to them. And they solemnly vowed to be best friends forever, kindred minds as Anne used to say. :

“Diana, repeat with me in unison.”

**_“I, Anne Shirley / Diana Barry, do solemnly swear to be the best friend of Diana Barry/Anne Shirley until the Sun awakens and the Moon falls asleep. Until the flowers have no petals and the trees lose their branches and leaves. “_ **

Anne, despite her fears, her past trauma, did her best to win Marilla's heart. She was happy because there were just a few days to go before the picnic with the Barry where all the Avonleans were present. But she was still that very imaginative girl, that she loved to make up stories and feel like her characters. One afternoon she saw a brooch that belonged to Marilla and Matthew's mother. She began to play with him and lost it in a corner of the house. Marilla was beside herself, looking for it. And not finding it , she forced Anne to confess. Out of fear that she won't let her go to the picnic, she lied to Anne telling her that she had accidentally dropped it into a lake. Marilla dismissed her instantly, and Anne with tears in her eyes went to her room to prepare her few possessions. The next morning, a car came to pick her up to take her to the Avonlea station. She left with broken dreams, illusions painted in darkness. She just wanted to go to the picnic, and she ended up going back to her misery. As she got off the train in Charlottetown, a strange man approached her:

“Your family asked me to come find you.” she-she began to say, trying to touch her arm- “Come with me. Don't be shy, I have candy if you want.”

Anne, scared, fled at full speed and took the ship in the direction of Nova Scotia. When she arrived at the door of the orphanage, night had fallen. She moved closer, and breathed. She couldn't go back there. She ran off until she found a tree where she lay down and fell asleep. She decided to take her life in hand.

The next day, while Matthew was desperately searching for her after Marilla had found her brooch on the couch and she had begged him to find the girl again; Anne was trying to make her own life. She took the boat again to get to Charlottetown, ending up at the station reciting poems to earn money to pay for the train. People hardly listened to her, they looked at her. But Anne did not despair. She waited until she found Matthew looking at her with excited and tired eyes. He approached her and Anne moved away from her asking him to leave her alone. A passing man chimed in asking if Matthew was bothering her. And there, he said a phrase that will remain forever in Anne's memory:

**_“Don't worry Sir, she is my daughter.”_ **

Tearful eyes, Anne jumped into his arms. And they both went to Green Gables where Marilla, actually scared and regretful as ever, but trying to look cold and emotionless, was waiting for them. Anne was convinced that Marilla did not love her, that she tolerated her only for Matthew. And he had said the same thing to Diana when they crossed in the forest:

"Who tells me that they will never fire me again, Diana?" I am afraid that everything will start again, of becoming attached and then having to leave …”

“Anne, the Cuthberts decided to keep you. Trust.”

Marilla felt the thoughts of the girl about her and decided to show her that she accepted her and that since then she was an integral part of her family, to record her name in the family Bible. A very strong symbolic act. Anne Shirley-Cuthbert. How nice that name sounded. Anne was moved, it was the first time in her life that she could say that she had a family . She vowed to be faithful to them forever and they celebrated happily.

The next afternoon there was the picnic that Anne longed to go to. She always dressed in her brown dress and with a blue ribbon given by Marilla in her hair. She was eager to see Diana and meet new people. Her disappointment was great when she saw that Diana could not run to see her and when she heard all the inhabitants of Avonlea looking at her with contempt.:

“What an ugly girl!”

“Have you seen her hair? Awful!”

«Elle a des taches sur son visage, ha ha!»

«C'est une fille certainement démente qui vient d'un asile de malades mentaux.»

«De quelle race de chien s'agit-il?»

"Je ne comprends pas comment les Cuthberts pourraient acheter quelque chose comme ça."

Le regard troublé par la fureur et la douleur, Anne courut se cacher pour pleurer dans les bras d'un arbre. Marilla la suivit et essaya de la réconforter. Dans sa courte vie, personne de mieux qu'Anne n'a pu évoquer la cruauté des hommes. Mais ils n'étaient pas tous comme ça, elle le savait. Les bonnes et les mauvaises personnes existent de tous côtés, de tous âges. Le lendemain, Anne devait commencer quelque chose de nouveau dans son existence: l'école. Et après ce qui s'est passé au pique-nique, elle savait que tout ne serait pas facile. Après que Marilla se soit assise à côté d'elle sur le sol, Anne a laissé tomber sa tête sur l'épaule de sa mère adoptive:

«Demain sera un nouveau jour.»


	2. A flame of attraction.♥

"Well, let me continue reading, please" said one boy to his sister taking the book away from her before continuing - On this first Monday in September, Anne had to get up early to go to school. Her first day. She was nervous, especially after the insults she had received at the picnic. Of course, she could read, she had learned it on her own at the orphanage thanks to the script of instructions for the fires. She could write quite well, although she found certain sounds a bit difficult. That morning, she put on her brown dress and her hat that she had decorated with flowers, while she was touching up her red braids. And she went downstairs to have her breakfast:

"Anne, how do you feel about this first day?”Marilla asked her. 

"I'm pretty nervous to be honest, but since flowers are born in the spring, it's a new cycle starting for me. I hope to make new friends despite the way I was treated yesterday.”she said while taking an apple "Well, I'm off, I don't want to be late, see you later!" 

She went to school walking through the forest where he admired every tree, every flower, every branch while dancing and singing a traditional Gaelic tune in Nova Scotia :

" **_Beanntaichean àrda is àillidh leacainnean,Sluagh ann an còmhnuidh is còire cleachdainnean,'S aotrom mo cheum a' leum g'am faicinn,Is fanaidh mi tacan le deòin..."_ *** 

Eyes full of hope and life, she arrived in front of the school. She entered the small wooden building with a smile. There Diana was waiting for her with the other girls and they introduced themselves:

"Well, I'm Josie Pye." - spoke of a tall blonde girl with blue eyes - "This is Tillie Boulter, Ruby Gillis and Jane Andrews." 

They greeted each other and started talking about their passions. Anne evoked their love of words and books as the girls looked at her like she was a freak.

"My favourite books are _Jane Eyre_ and _Pride & Prejudices. _ They are works as exquisite as when flowers become fruits of a thousand colours". 

"I like to read too." 

"Don't talk nonsense,Tillie. You don't even know how to open a book." Josie said and the others laughed. "Anne, I haven't told you before, but what a beautiful dress you have." She continued with a fake smile on her face. 

"Well, thank you. Marilla had it done for me." 

"Otherwise you don't even think about talking to the boys. They're too dumb except for Gilbert Blythe. Ahhh, Gilbert! He's so smart and handsome." cried Ruby sweetly.

"Anne, you have to know. Gilbert Blythe is the most popular boy in Avonlea. He left two years ago with his father in Alberta and the news is that he will be back soon. "

"Oh, look friends! The ugly doggy without parents is back!" Someone suddenly shrieked. 

Anne turned and saw Billy Andrews who was looking at her with hatred and disgust. As soon as Anne decided to answer him, Professor Mr Phillips came in and called the roll until he came to the name of the little redheaded girl..:

"Anne Shirley-Cuthbert" He called while the girl raised her hand. "So, you are the orphan from the asylum. Mmh, ok." 

A little later, Mr Phillips was putting some exercises on the blackboard that the students had to copy. When the teacher came to look at Anne's notebook he was shocked and told her in a condescending manner

"Mhh, you don't have the level. You can tell you're coming from a dirty class, your work is full of misspellings. Not to mention those meaningless equations. 

The whole class except Diana laughed and Anne was humiliated. During recess, the two friends went outside and as they looked out the window, they saw something strange between the teacher and a student in the class, Prissy Andrews, Billy and Jane's sister. Mr Phillips was holding her hands. Anne and Diana suspected that they were together and since they were not married, it was forbidden to hold hands. They decided to tell the gossip to the other girls and the fire-haired girl linked what happened to Prissy with a memory she had to attend to when she was living with the Hammonds. That upset the girls who were angry with Anne and left her alone for breakfast while she listened to everyone making fun of her. She then returned home sad but putting on her best smile so as not to disturb Marilla. However, her little lie vanished as her adoptive parents asked her if she had made any new friends and she told them what had happened. 

The next day he made the same journey from the forest to school. She was walking while praying that her day would be less chaotic than the previous one, when she was challenged by Billy Andrews who insulted her while looking at her dangerously. Anne was terrified but she would not have let Billy Andrews beat her in her sleep:

"Ugly doggie, how about I do to you what you said about my sister?" He said to her as he approached her with an intimidating look as if he had been determined to break her into a thousand pieces and plunge her into dishonour and hatred.

"Billy, what are you doing? We have to go to school." A voice came closer and closer until it reached them. Billy turned and momentarily forgot about the girl as he left. Anne watched the boy: tall, with dark hair and full of curls, hazel eyes always changing between dark green and light brown. He was very handsome, she had never seen anyone like him..:

"Do other dragons have to be killed?" he asked. 

"No, thank you." 

Because of her seemingly friendly way with Billy, Anne thought that he would probably be no different from the others and would make fun of her. She took her things that had fallen on the floor and ran away at full speed, as she listened to him speak

"Hey Miss! Miss! What's your name?"

He followed her and they met in front of the door of the building. He stood before her and opened the door. Anne then thought that perhaps he would not be like the others as he was one of the first people in her life to treat her well. When they entered, they both looked into each other's eyes and a fire of strange feelings danced in Anne's heart without her being able to recognise what it was. :

**_"I'm very sorry if I've been rude. I'm Anne."_ **

**_"I am..."_ **The boy was trying to answer in awe of this different and unique girl. He had hardly known her for a few minutes but he was able to say that she was not like the others: not only because of her very particular physique and this hair colour that he found charming; but because he could smell the smell of resilience in that tiny creature that made him think of the fairies, the dryads of stories that his father read to him during his childhood. Moreover, she was the first person who was immune to his charms and did not fall at his feet. This was a great novelty for him. 

"GILBERT!" I was about to tell him his name when all the boys came to hug him and take him away from the girl. The students sat down in their seats, while the girls looked at Anne, Ruby, with tears in their eyes. 

"Buddy, what were you doing talking to the orphan?" 

"Why not?" 

"Better not even talk to her, she's a loon where she comes from." 

"I don't care where she comes from. A cute girl is a cute girl." 

While the boys were talking, the girls on their side were also chatting away from Anne. During the break, they stood in front of the redhead and threatened her..:

"You don't have the right to talk to Gilbert Blythe. Ruby Gillis has been in love with him for three years. So, if you want to have friends, don't even think about talking to him or looking at him." said Josie Pye with the others nodding their heads. 

**_"Don't worry, I won't talk to him again._ **

The day of classes continued. Anne felt the boy's attention on her and that bothered her because she didn't want to miss the chance to have friends because of him. She ignored him, she ran away, not knowing that it was her contempt that attracted Gilbert who was not determined to let her win the battle and wanted to get to know her better. While the teacher was putting equations on the blackboard, the boy threw papers at Anne's table first. No reaction. Then he dropped his apple until it reached the girl's feet. No more success. Then, he stood up under all the glances of the students, approached her, put the apple on her table, and took her braid on his fingers, determined to get her attention. As he pulled her hair a little tighter, he said '' **_Hey carrot!_ **

That phrase exploded like a bomb in the heart of the girl who stood up and hit her with the blackboard, shouting "I'm not talking to you! Gilbert, hurt by the blow but above all attracted, shocked, amazed by that girl and her temper, smiled. 

"Well, you already have." He replied as Anne looked at him, also surprised to see that he was not looking at her badly or insulting her. Mr. Phillips, alarmed by the screams, punished Anne furiously, humiliating her further about her character and her way of being. Everyone was making fun of her, except Gilbert who was desperately trying to say that it was all his fault. Fed up, with raindrops falling from her sad eyes, Anne ran away determined never to return to that place again. 

On returning home, Gilbert came to see his sick father. He did not have much time left to live and his son wanted to spend as much time as possible with him. That afternoon he told him about Anne.:

"I didn't tell you, there was a new girl at school today." A smile was drawn on her face as she evoked it. 

"Oh yeah? “ 

"Yes, her name is Anne, she has red hair and a fierce character. She was adopted by the Cuthberts." 

"For the Cuthberts? I never thought they would have adopted a child, but it's good news for this girl to have found her place. I imagine she had to suffer a lot. 

One night, Avonlea woke up in flames. The Gillis' house had caught fire and all the neighbours were trying to stop the fire. When Anne arrived with Marilla, she went to hug Diana when she noticed that the doors and windows were open. Then she impulsively ran inside the house in wet clothes. Marilla and Diana were scared to death. Anne ran up the stairs at full speed as she closed the doors. At the same time, Gilbert was in front of a window from the roof throwing water to try to control the fire when he saw her. He could not believe it:

"Anne!" he cried out in trepidation. 

The girl didn't answer him, she looked at him and closed the door. Gilbert shouted at the men to go faster and soon after thanks to Anne, the fire stopped. 

One morning, Anne had decided to go back to school. She wanted to study and be better than Gilbert Blythe. To her great surprise, when she arrived, Ruby realized that after having spent a few nights with Anne while the men were rebuilding their house, Diana came to embrace her happiness of her return. Gilbert watched her silently trying to hide his smile. He had only seen her a few times but he missed her when she was not there, so seeing her again was very nice for him. With effort, Anne managed to compete seriously with him, and to get very good results. The academic competition then began between the two of them. One afternoon, Mr Phillips organised a competition where the students had to spell out a few words. As usual, Anne and Gilbert faced off for the win and seeing that the redhead was not feeling well as she was massaging her tummy with her hand, he decided to let her win by making a mistake with the word "commitment". As they were about to return to their seats, Gilbert could not help but tell her..:

"I had to add an 'E', congratulations Anne." 

The girl turned around without wanting to answer him as he slowly watched her. 

In December, the teacher forced Anne to take the study books to Gilbert as he had not been here for a few weeks. She was furious to do so but had no other choice. So she went to her worst enemy's house and understood everything. She knocked on the door, and after a few minutes, an old man opened it, curved and apparently very sick and tired. :

"What beautiful red hair!" He marvelled at her.

They talked a bit when Gilbert arrived with snow in his curls and his bright hazel eyes. Anne gave him her books.:

"Mr Phillips doesn't want you to be late. You are his best student." 

"Neither do I. If you want to beat me, do it fairly and square." 

A few weeks later, John Blythe had whispered his last breath. At his funeral, everything was very dark. All the inhabitants came but nobody approached Gilbert to ask him how he felt, if he had anything to eat or if he needed to talk. Anne looked at him sadly and wanted to comfort him but didn't really know how to do it. The people who came to talk to him, came only to ask him if his land was for sale. One afternoon, Anne saw him pass by the window, walking alone with his melancholy and sadness. She ran to see him to try and comfort him. He failed. He couldn't find the right words and ended up making him angry and hurting him. 

"Are you saying I'm lucky?" 

"If you compare it to me, yes." 

"And who said anything about you?" he said as he left her alone. 

At his side, Gilbert wandered around with no desire to enjoy life. He was alone. Furious, wounded, hurt. The only people who asked him how he felt, who cared a little about him, were the Cuthberts. Matthew offered to help him with his farm and Marilla talked to him about her past memories with her father while they met at the cemetery. As they walked through the woods, she came across Billy Andrews and his friends. She didn't have the slightest idea of talking to anyone, least of all to them..:

"When are you coming back, buddy? Since you left, the ugly orphan thinks she's smart. You have to come back to make her understand that she is not." 

"Yes, it is, Billy. If you want to beat her, you have to open books by yourself." 

"What's wrong with you?" 

"Can I give you some advice? I am not your buddy and the next time you harass Anne you will deal with me, understood?" 

And since Billy couldn't shut up, Gilbert in a rage lit up and threw himself down to hit him with all his might. They fought in the snow. Gilbert managed to take control of the situation, and vented all his anger on Billy who left terrified and shocked. 

Diana, Ruby and Anne were on their way to Gilbert's house after cooking a dish for him. When they arrived, Gilbert was sitting at his table thanking them despite his lack of appetite. As the redhead tried to look invisible, the girls explained the dish to Gilbert..:

"Anne made the mash. She's a good cook." 

Some horrible memories came back to Anne's mind and without thinking she screamed

"But I would make a terrible wife." And she ran away while they looked at her in bewilderment. 

Regretful as ever, Anne wrote a letter of apology. A few days later she went to Gilbert's house to apologize, and when she arrived she saw that no one was there and that he had left. 

In February, Anne went to Charlottetown with Jerry. They had to sell all the Cuthberts' possessions, so they could make money to save Green Gables. Matthew was sick at heart, Marilla had to stay with him. So, the girl went to several shops to sell. She returned the dress of her dreams with its puffed sleeves that Matthew had bought her for Christmas. To convince the shopkeepers, she made up all sorts of stories like the objects came from the Russian or British royal family for example. 

Gilbert, on the other hand, had been in Charlottetown for a few weeks to work with the goal of earning money and finding a position on a boat. It was his last day at work before leaving his job when he passed in front of a shop. Without knowing why, he was attracted to it and looked through the window. When he saw her. He looked at it as if it were the purest jewel in existence. Anne came out and they met face to face. They could not believe that they were meeting again for the last time. They had lost their words as they saw each other and lost themselves in each other's eyes, and decided to go and have tea in a restaurant. Gilbert invited her and they talked about their lives, their projects. 

"Gilbert, I have to apologize to you." 

"No, you don't." 

“Yes, I do."

"No, I have to apologize to you. I was rude." 

"But it was my fault." 

"Can we please not fight for once?"

"Can you stop contradicting me?"

He smiled as he watched her apologize. Both forgave each other and declared a truce. As they said goodbye, they were lost again as if they were alone on Earth. They didn't want to part. The magic vanished when Jerry said ''Au revoir.”

 **_"Come home again someday."_ **She says. 

As the ship sailed on, Gilbert fixed the horizon with his memories serving as company. He remembered every look, every word, every story told by his late father. Of every journey, every place they visited, every train they took. He was alone in the world. Again he saw the different funerals of his relatives that he had to attend: his mother who died while giving birth to him on that rainy October night, his brothers who all died before he was ten years old, his uncles, grandparents, cousins, his father. He became the last Blythe alive. He thought of Anne. That pain brought them closer, she was the only person he knew who could understand it. He imagined her smile, her hair of fire as red as her cheeks when they said goodbye in Charlottetown, her big eyes as blue as the summer sky and the ocean that he looked at to try to feel her perfume. Gilbert did not know how he felt about Anne. He knew that he liked her, that there was a certain attraction, but that melody that was playing in his heart was getting stronger and stronger. He had already left without knowing if they would ever meet again. The memory of Anne unwittingly became Gilbert's strength, as he worked hard on the coal. He had gained new knowledge, and one became his best friend, or rather, brother. Sebastian Lacroix, better known as Bash, a young man of about twenty-five who was originally from Trinidad. The other men did not understand how someone like Gilbert could decide to be on this ship working like a madman when he could choose to go home to Avonlea; they had no place to live, to be treated like human beings. Gilbert was a white-skinned boy, no one could judge him on this basis. No one could treat him as if he were a piece of rubbish or something worthless for the simple reason that he was black in a world full of intolerance and prejudice, of hatred and fear about differences and other human beings. At first, they had been a little perplexed by Gilbert, but when they saw the kindness and sincerity of the boy who treated them as equals, they began to love him as if he were part of their family. They taught him to dance to different rhythms, to discover new fruits and typical dishes, new words, new stories... One night, after a fight with Bash for having sung, causing the anger of the chef who forced Sebastian to do more work. When he returned, he was a little angry with Gilbert trying to ignore him while the boy tried to apologize.:

"Bash, can you hear me? I know you're not sleeping, your eyes are open. Sebastian?"

"Is your name Sebastian? He's much less fierce than Bash." Said one man. 

"Blythe, you're ruining my reputation. If you keep opening your mouth, I'll have no choice but to punch you in the face." 

That phrase made him think directly of her, and he began to evoke her.

"I remember that one day, a girl, Anne, hit me in the face with her slate. I had called her Carrot. I wonder if I'd ever see her again. As he talked about her, a smile and nostalgic eyes were drawn on Gilbert's face. 

A few days later, he received a letter from Anne who had managed to locate him and told him that gold had been found in Avonlea. He never imagined that anyone would write to him except her, but he was happy. She smiled at the letter, looking at its handwriting, its well-done letters. Despite the possible gold in Avonlea, she didn't know if she wanted to go back there. She felt that if she did, something would prevent her from leaving again. Bash used to tease Gilbert that he was in love with Anne and that only a child could not tell his feelings. 

When they arrived in Trinidad, they stopped and after doing their job, Bash made Gilbert visit his place of origin. The latter was for the first time a direct witness of the racism that Bash had to put up with because of his different skin colour. He wondered how people could think that because they are not like them, people of colour, people of other religions, orphans and everything that does not fit into the norms dictated by society, they do not deserve respect and to be treated as what they are, that is human beings. He was disgusted to see how those people treated Bash by asking him for things as if he were a slave when more than fifty years had passed since the abolition of that disgusting and inhuman practice. 

After meeting Bash's mother Hazel, who changed her behaviour dramatically when a white boy came to hug her, probably the son of the family she was working with, and ate what she had given them, the two friends went for a walk before boarding again. When suddenly, they heard a woman scream in pain as a person threw her things in her face telling her never to come back. The woman was losing her water, and there was no one around to take care of her. So Gilbert, despite his fear and mistrust, helped her to give birth. He was worried that the baby would not arrive in the podalic position, that is, with the legs coming out first instead of the head. It was a dangerous position, Gilbert knew that. He had read books on this subject, after knowing that this position killed his mother while she was giving birth to him, and that they had almost managed to save the little one from death. However, in the case of this woman, Ruth, everything passed without death on the horizon. Her baby arrived safe and sound. Bash and Gilbert returned to the ship happy. The boy had found his vocation: he wanted to be a doctor. 

The next stop on the trip was Canada, and Gilbert suggested that Bash return with him to Avonlea. As the boat sailed on, Gilbert stared at the ocean, watching the blue colour, thinking again about the redheaded girl and when they would meet again at school. Upon arrival, Bash was struggling with the feeling of the cold Canadian winter after having spent his life in the sun. After settling back into this house without his father but with a brother at heart, Gilbert woke up that December morning after eight months away to return to school. He was like everyone else surprised to see Anne with her hair cut, but unlike the others who laughed at her, he was only happy to see her again. He felt even stronger that symphony of emotions inside him but he still couldn't put a name to it. It was the same for Anne. After a few months full of stories to the Story Club that he had created with Diana, Ruby and Cole, of laughs, of fights especially with Billy Andrews and his friends, of nightmares with the indelible marks of their traumas. She hated herself for having taken that dye, imagining that it would change her red hair into the colour of her dreams when she discovered her green hair and that she had no choice but to cut it all off. And the final straw was to meet Gilbert again after months in this state. However, no matter how much teasing he received, he decided to enjoy the moment to live a few moments as if he were a boy, far from the prejudices and codes imposed on girls. 

The days passed quickly in Avonlea, and Christmas came. Marilla had invited Gilbert and Bash. Despite Bash's difficult adaptation to Avonlea, the Cuthberts were the only ones to treat him normally and be friendly to him. While they were waiting for Anne in the living room, they talked.:

"I can't wait to meet Anne. I've heard a lot about her." Bash said as Marilla smiled. Gilbert couldn't scold a shy little smile. 

A few minutes later, she arrived in her dress with puffed sleeves. Gilbert couldn't help but get up when he saw her. He didn't care about the state of her hair or what she was wearing, to him she was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. The adults smiled and laughed as they watched them. They got up on the table and started to eat. As they ate, Anne kept talking to Bash. The two seemed to be getting along very well. Gilbert found it a little difficult to notice anything other than Anne's image on his plate. He looked at her with curious and intense eyes while listening to her laugh and seeing her smile. He had never met anyone as passionate as she was, so full of life. And Anne was so alienated from that pair of eyes that they devoured her sweetly. She was happy as she chatted with Bash about Trinidad. 

After dinner, when it was time to leave for the Christmas pantomime, Marilla asked Anne to blow out the candles on the Christmas tree. So Gilbert helped her and the two of them found themselves blowing out each part of the tree. Until there was a candle left which they blew out at the same time, meeting face to face. They stared at each other, losing themselves again. His gaze suddenly fell innocently to her lips. They had always unconsciously considered him attractive not only because of his beautiful form, but because deep down he longed to taste them one day. Anne was a thousand light years away from imagining what Gilbert was thinking. Everything was always very confused with him. She always felt her heart beating a little stronger when he was present, when she heard the sound of his deep, low voice or when her eyes met. At school they used to compete for first place. The redhead was as wild as the fox, but the boy was not easily beaten. Outside the school, they got along well, especially since the Cuthberts were the first to accept Bash. A few seconds later, Gilbert stopped her and handed her a small package.

"Merry Christmas, Anne." He said as she opened the little drawer to discover a little dictionary. 

"Thank you Gilbert. Sorry, I have nothing for you." She was grateful as he looked at her as if to say that for him, the best Christmas gift was to be with her. 

And they went to Avonlea Square for the Christmas pantomime. 

The months passed as quickly as Anne's hair grew. By April, they were already reaching under her ears. It wasn't her best feature but even this cut didn't stop Gilbert from looking at her as if she was the most beautiful person in his eyes. Every day he found her more beautiful as the flowers bloomed. On the day of Prissy Andrews' marriage to Mr Phillips, and while the bride was entering the church and all eyes were on her Gilbert, could not help but look at Anne on the other side, who was marvelling at Prissy's dress. Their glances crossed again. He seemed to see her in his mind a few years later, in her wedding dress while he was waiting for her. This intense fire was so strong and frightening to Anne that she looked away and continued to stare at Prissy. When she suddenly saw the professor's dislike and what it meant to marry him, she ran out of the building. All the girls followed her and danced in the snow. 

The competition between Anne and Gilbert was becoming more and more pronounced. They fought almost daily, they always had something to discuss..: 

"Why do you have to feel smarter than us? Because you're older?" Anne once told him in exasperation after Gilbert answered a question from the temporary teacher. 

"Scientific books do not only serve as words like the novels you read so much, but also to put concepts, theories, allowing to act, to try, to save lives. He exclaimed as Anne despised the school science books that Gilbert was in the habit of reading. 

In September, Anne's hair reached her shoulders and she could again tie it in braids. At the same time, a new teacher arrived, Miss Stacy, who was a very different woman from the others: she wore trousers, rode a bicycle, and had very unconventional working methods. To introduce herself, she asked each student to describe themselves with two words starting with their initials. Anne, fearing that the teacher would not like her, began to gossip, which earned her a reprimand. Gilbert looked at her a little angrily. She was one of the only people who could easily get him out of his head. They fought again after Anne saw Gilbert talking to Miss Stacy about her project to finish school early and go to university. Anne didn't want to admit it but was a little afraid that she would leave and not see him anymore. She was afraid that he would walk away from her again. Gilbert seemed a little tired of arguing with her, but he was getting more and more intense, passionate. 

The teacher called the students to make an experience with potatoes and bulbs that had the goal of turning on the light. Anne and Gilbert, as usual, competed over who had the best answers. The experience worked until the mothers of some of the pupils arrived, very sceptical about the arrival of Miss Stacy. Moody, on the other hand, was eager for chocolate and thought she could find its taste by touching the thread between the potatoes and the bulbs. The ingredients fell to the ground and broke, while Gilbert instinctively put his arm in front of Anne to protect her. This event created a scandal in Avonlea and a disciplinary council was held to replace Miss Stacy. 

Anne, Ruby, Diana, Cole and Moody were determined to stop the teacher from leaving. After being forced by Anne to travel to Charlottetown, they were waiting for the passengers to enter and for no one to see them. Gilbert, for his part, was sitting down, determined to find Bash after their fight and for him to go and meet Mary, a woman they had met a few months earlier. He was looking out the window without really noticing when he saw some people running to jump on the freight train. Perplexed, he looked out and recognized the Avonlea boys and inside them Anne. He could not believe it. Seeing that they were not seen and that everything had gone well for them, he decided to wait for them in front of the door..:

Anne dared to ask him that when he had been a passenger in rules, paying for his ticket. 

"I guess I may ask you the same question." He stared at her. 

After helping her down, the two started talking about their missions. Cole was waiting for them and then when Gibert left, he told Anne that the golden boy from Avonlea liked her. Anne couldn't believe it, it was impossible. Who could possibly like her? Least of all someone like Gilbert. But without wanting to, she herself looked at him with those eyes increasingly full of some difficult taste to qualify. When night fell, the Avonlea boys achieved their goal. 

A few weeks later, Bash and Mary had decided to get married in Charlottetown. The Cuthberts and Gilberts sat together in the church. It was a very beautiful and love-filled ceremony. Anne and Gilbert came out of the church together, and they talked.:

"Before you leave school, I wanted to tell you that I'll try to be more friendly with you." 

"I'm not leaving school. I have decided to stay with my family." 

"I have found my vocation. I want to be a teacher like Miss Stacy. 

"With tragic romances and all that?" 

"This remains to be seen." 

They stood there looking at each other again, smiling and wondering in each other's eyes, as they were separated by the crowds coming out of the church. 

  
  
  


The months flew by. In the school, the children were very excited as they had two projects pending: the creation of a press for the whole city and a play to be presented in March, on Anne's birthday. For the newspaper, they met every week to decide on the articles to be written. Each one had a task within the organisation, Anne and Gilbert were the deputy editors of the newspaper. They had to check everything and always agree together before it was published. They fought all the time but got along better and better and a real bond was created between them. The Blythe-Lacroix and the Shirley-Cuthbert were like a family: they saw each other almost every day, they used to invite each other for dinner and walks. Mary learned to cook from Anne on Saturdays when Gilbert went to his medical practice course with Dr Ward in Charlottetown. 

"I'd maybe put a little more force into this part, Charlie. It's too passive. How do you want to change the world if you talk in such neutral words?"

"No, don't change anything. It's okay. We don't want to make a mess every week. 

"Are you saying I make a mess, Gilbert?" 

"I'm saying that every time we publish an article with the goal of gently raising awareness among readers, you always put your grain of salt in wanting to pass on the ideas with force in an abrupt way. And that's why people never take the time to think about the ideas, but get angry with us by creating more problems, Anne". 

"I can't believe it. You're insinuating that it's my fault." 

"Take it as you like. I just think that sometimes before acting you should think more about the consequences and talk to us. That's all." 

"Perhaps, but let me tell you that those who remain passive on reflection for centuries, are not much good anymore. People like me, we may be annoying, we may be angry, but at least we act; not like certain people I know." 

"The rush can sometimes turn against you, Anne, and the message you want to convey can be understood in reverse. 

On weekends, they would meet in the woods to rehearse the play. They had chosen Shakespeare's _Much ado about nothing._ It tells the story of the Prince of Aragon, Don Pedro, who was travelling to Sicily in the lands of his friend Leonato, with his men. There the intrigue centres on two couples: that of Benedick, a soldier of the prince, and Beatrice, the niece of the Sicilian governor Leonato, two intelligent characters who live by waging verbal war while swearing never to marry; and that of Claudio, a friend of Benedick and Hero, Leonato's daughter, who fall in love at first sight and marry almost instantly. Many vicissitudes create conflicts between the characters, before ending on a happy note. 

The distribution of the characters was complex and created conflicts among the students. So Miss Stacy had to end the discussions by attributing each character to a character: 

"Moody as Claudio, Charlie as Don Pedro, Ruby as Hero, Billy Andrews as Leonato" - he followed the list to the end - "Anne as Beatrice and Gilbert as Benedick. 

Anne and Gilbert had to act as two enemies who refused to marry and the other gender to finally fall in love. And both of them, inside their hearts, felt more and more the smell of the flame. They would meet at one another's house on the weekends after the meetings for the newspaper to rehearse. It was quite rare for them but when they didn't fight or lose each other in their eyes, they laughed a lot..:

" **_BENEDICK_ **

_Well, even if he is her father, I'm sure she wouldn't want to have the head of the old man on her shoulders!_

**_BEATRICE_ **

_I'm amazed you're still talking, Signior Benedick. No one's listening to you._

**_BENEDICK_ **

_Look, it's my dear Lady Disdain! Aren't you dead yet?_

**_BEATRICE_ **

_How could disdain die when you're here? When you're around, even Lady Courtesy becomes Lady Disdain._

**_BENEDICK_ **

_That makes Lady Courtesy a traitor. All ladies love me, except you. It's too bad I'm so hard-hearted, because I really don't love anyone."_

"Hmm. Gilbert, I think it would be better if you felt your replies. That is, not just by reading them like you read a history lesson, but as if they were you Benedick." 

"Okay. I'll try. Shall we start again?"

**_"BEATRICE_ **

_Women are lucky, then. You would make a nasty suitor. Thankfully, I feel the same way you do. I have no need for romance. I would rather listen to my dog bark at a crow than hear a man swear that he loves me._

**_BENEDICK_ **

_Well, I hope you stay in that frame of mind or some poor man will end up with his face all scratched up._

**_BEATRICE_ **

_If he has a face like yours, a good scratching couldn't make him look any worse._

**_BENEDICK_ **

_Listen to you, instructing me like a parrot would._

**_BEATRICE_ **

_I'd rather be a squawking bird than an animal like you._

**_BENEDICK_ **

_I wish my horse moved as fast as your mouth and was as tireless. That's it-I'm done._

**_BEATRICE_ **

_You always slip out of the argument like this. I know you from before."_

"Gilbert! It was incredible. Really, it was much better. I can tell you felt what you were saying, it was... perfect!" 

"Well, all that was achieved thanks to the best counselor in the world. Thank you, Anne." 

They smiled happily at each other and followed their repetitions as curious eyes caught sight of them in the distance while they recited their lines with passion. 

On Friday, March 5th, it was quickly announced. It was the day of the show but also of Anne's fifteenth birthday. They were all very tense, nervous to show up in front of all of Avonlea, but ready to enjoy the moment. They had decided to make a surprise at the end of the play for the birthday girl and they had to keep the secret without her noticing. When she came, everyone pretended that they didn't, and Anne felt a little bad. Some women had helped to sew the costumes and others were in charge of creating the sets. Anne wore a beautiful emerald green dress with her hair down and decorated with a crown of flowers. Gilbert, on the other hand, was dressed in a black suit. And the show began. The audience seemed to enjoy watching the children perform. That performance allowed certain people to confirm again the sparks flying in the air between Benedick and Beatrice as well as Gilbert and Anne, and they smiled happily. They both put so much dedication and passion into their performance. . 

**"BENEDICK**

Wait a moment, Friar. Which one of you is Beatrice?

**BEATRICE**

_(taking off her mask)_ That's my name. What do you want?

**BENEDICK**

Do you love me?

**BEATRICE**

No, no more than is reasonable.

**BENEDICK**

Well then, your uncle and the Prince and Claudio have been deceived. They swore you did.

**BEATRICE**

Do you love me?

**BENEDICK**

Truly, no-no more than is reasonable.

**BEATRICE**

Well then, Margaret, Ursula, and my cousin have been very much deceived, for they swore you did.

**BENEDICK**

They swore that you were sick with love for me.

**BEATRICE**

They swore that you were nearly dead with love for me.

**BENEDICK**

Oh, well. So you don't love me?

**BEATRICE**

No, I don't-except as a friend.

**LEONARDO**

Come on, niece, I'm sure you love him.

**CLAUDIO**

And I'll swear that he loves her. Here's a clumsy sonnet, in Benedick's handwriting, dedicated to Beatrice. _(holding up a piece of paper)_

**HERO**

And here's another poem, which I stole from my cousin's pocket-in her handwriting and all about her adoration for Benedick. _(holding up a piece of paper)_

**BENEDICK**

What a miracle! Our handwriting gives away our hearts. Come on, I'll take you, but honestly I'm only doing it out of pity.

**BEATRICE**

I won't say no to you, but let it be known that I'm only doing this after a lot of persuasion and to save your life -I hear you were quickly wasting away without me.

**BENEDICK**

Oh, shut up! I'll stop your mouth with a kiss."

And they looked at each other intensely after that retort. There they were not pretending to be Benedick and Beatrice, just Anne and Gilbert. Of course they didn't kiss themselves on it, it would be totally scandalous to do so, but the secret desire they had was visible to those who paid attention, least of all to them. As they continued to watch their mouths without even really hearing the applause, Miss Stacy arrived with a cake in hand with everyone singing the birthday tune. Anne was more excited than ever in her life. It was the first time she had ever experienced such a moment, it was the best birthday, she was already far from the five of March alone and abandoned. She was already loved, loved for what she is and celebrated her day with those who made her happy since her adoption. 

And the months went by like a song thrown to the wind. Bash and Mary had had a daughter, Delphine, and they were all very happy but also tired from the incomplete nights. They celebrated the New Year's Eve with the Cuthberts as usual. The relationship between Anne and Gilbert was still strange, divided between moments of extreme complicity, passionate fights, school competition and always with those looks that were amplified more and more with a taste of... Desire. They could not yet determine what they felt when they looked at each other, when they lost themselves in each other, but they could smell the flame being fanned more strongly every day. 

Avonlea's friends had gathered in the city to watch the boys play hockey and for the girls to write an article about that same game. Gilbert had been appointed captain. He was very focused on the game when he saw a storm of red approaching. He couldn't help but look at it. His hair, which had grown long, was loose and some sweet waves had been created. Anne had blossomed incredibly as a girl and was attracting looks without him noticing. Then Gilbert approached the girls and stood in front of her. He let out the first thing that came to his mind:

"Wasn't Ruby supposed to be covering the game?" 

"Ruby's busy watching someone." Tillie had fun while the girls laughed at him. Uncomfortably, Gilbert left. He couldn't believe that Ruby was still obsessed with him when she hadn't even shown him any interest. 

"Girls, did you see the way he looked at me? His eyes are full of romance." 

Listening to Ruby, Anne felt a hint of jealousy without knowing why. The other girls laughed, telling Ruby that Gilbert would never notice her if he had never done so before. But Anne decided to help her friend and as the novelty of the moment was the return of the blackboard where love messages were often posted in public, she went to ask the boy if he wanted to post.

"Posting"? About our future life? 

"Yes."

"Together?" 

"Yes. If you like Ruby, she'd like you to post for her." 

And at Ruby's evocation, Gilbert, who had felt excited by Anne, and had heard her heart beating faster, was shattered. In fact, he considered the blackboard of secrets to be something silly, and he would not have thought that Anne was among those who liked this either, but if she had wanted it, he would have been able to post for her. Never for Ruby or anyone else. 

A little later, Miss Stacy asked each student to tell her family story. When Anne's turn came. Gilbert, eager to learn more about her, since she never evoked her past, gave her his utmost attention. 

"Hmm... Let's see, I am an enigma that has not yet found its solution." 

Everyone looked at them without understanding.

"I'm an orphan, and I don't know anything about my parents. She clarified.

"Anne, you can come with me please." Said Miss Stacy and they both left.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bother you with this exercise. I know it must not be easy for you."

"Don't worry, Miss. It's just hard for me not to know who I am and what I have inside. I hardly know their names, but I have no idea where they came from and who they were.

"And at the orphanage nobody knows anything?" 

"Good idea! I never thought to ask them." 

After school, without knowing why Anne wanted to approach Gilbert. Deep down she was remembering Ruby's phrase "the eyes of romance" and wanted to check if she could see him too. Gilbert, alerted, wondered who was calling him when he saw her. His face immediately softened. And they were lost as usual.:

"Anne?" 

"Eyes!...I…” 

“Mmh, have you forgotten what you wanted to say?”

"Ehhh..." 

"See you later." Gilbert left. 

And Anne went home that night talking about it with Marilla and Matthew. Her adoptive mother was perplexed, afraid of losing her child if she found her family again. Matthew, for his part, was willing to do everything to help her and make her happy. 

The next day was Anne's sixteenth birthday. She was no longer a child, but a young woman. It was her last year of school, and she had to pass the competitions to enter Queens University in Charlottetown, along with her classmates. Matthew and Marilla gave her a very special bracelet and she was very happy. Diana and her friends threw her a surprise party that really moved her. She felt loved and far away from the traumas of childhood. She never liked to evoke her past because it was too painful for her and she still couldn't put it into words, but the pain and the vivacity of hell were tattooed on her being. Like a nightmare that every time she tried to forget, she returned with more tenacity. 

  
  


When she returned home, Gilbert had given her a letter..:

"Happy birthday Anne. May you be very happy. Here's a book, I hope you like it." 

Anne took the book. It was entitled _Candide; or the Optimism,_ written by Voltaire, an 18th century philosopher, and was a classic of French literature that was translated into several languages. This book evokes through the history of Candide its protagonist the different struggles of the Enlightenment century: social classes, education, slaves, aristocrats, religion, jobs. 

The following week he had planned to return to the orphanage with her friend Cole. She had asked Gilbert to continue her practice with Dr Ward, accompany her to Charlottetown and then take the boat to Halifax after stopping at Aunt Josephine's. Gilbert was looking forward to this trip. For once, they were both going to be alone with no one watching and controlling them. He tried to imagine conversations: literature, politics, dreams, music... And nothing happened as he expected. Anne, annoyed by Marilla's restlessness that did not trust her and her senses, was offended after having spent half her life alone and independent. And she paid for it with Gilbert. 

"She loves you very much." 

"Do you know why I'm here? How important it is to me? No. All I know is that I could have gone there alone and that I certainly don't need you." 

That phrase danced in Gilbert's head as he felt hurt and angry. He decided to ignore it and took his book even though Anne was trying to apologize to him. He couldn't concentrate, he didn't know what to think with Anne: sometimes she seemed to love him and the next moment she seemed to hate him. He thought that perhaps the best thing for him would have been to forget her so that no more harm would be done. He knew that he liked Anne, but he could not force her to be mutual. And the healthiest thing was to turn the page and try to be happy. 

After dropping her off at Aunt Josephine's, and seeing her jump into Cole's arms, she went to Dr Ward's office. A few hours later, he saw a girl, Winifred Rose, the secretary, talking to the skeleton. Eager as ever to have a good time, he asked her out to have tea with him. Winifred, was pretty, from a good family, friendly and sweet. And although she shared similarities with Anne, she was very different from her : more conventional, respectful of societal rules and norms. 

After his appointment, Gilbert picked a flower that he took, dreaming with him and returned to the station. Anne came and sat next to him on the train. She was destroyed after her visit to the orphanage. It had been terrible, horrible. As she and Cole waited to see the headmistress, they watched as parents unscrupulously abandoned their children without turning around, looking at them or hugging them despite the screams of pain. Anne wondered if the same thing had happened to her, if her parents had left her there without any mercy. She hoped with all her heart that this would not have been her story. When they came in and she asked the director for information about her family, the lady let her go..:

"We have nothing. I'm sure the papers were destroyed by the mice. Goodbye.”

Then Anne showed Cole her secret place where she used to write. A piece of wood still had his name written on it. Her stories were still hidden in their place of origin and Cole read a little piece. 

"I can't believe it. I have spent years of my life here. In this empty, cold place." 

"Anne, it is true that you have suffered a lot, but your past made you who you are. Maybe it's a little selfish of me, but your story saved my life because you always treated me with such compassion and kindness.”

On the way down, they met the girl who used to martyr Anne during her childhood. He recognized her and started to insult her. She hadn't had the luck of the redhead to leave this place, and was hired as a maid. 

"What a surprise! Princess Cordélia! What are you doing here? He got you pregnant and you came to leave the brat?"

"Come Anne. Come on." Cole threw it away quickly and they went out. Anne cried all the time and her friend hugged her to reassure her as they returned to Charlottetown. 

When he arrived on the train, he sat next to Gilbert so that he would not notice his condition. He didn't pay attention to her and seemed a thousand light years away. 

"How was your visit?" she asked without really listening.

"Fine." 

Each returned to his place, where Anne determined to continue her searches found an angry Marilla after Anne's article on the Mi'kmaq community; and Gilbert discovered his late father's room completely destroyed by Mary's son Elijah who had left with the spoils. 

A few weeks later, Mary had become ill, she had been injured when she cut herself with the knife and the wound had become infected. She could no longer walk and her condition was getting worse by the minute. No doctor in Avonlea would accept to see her because of her skin colour. So Gilbert decided to go to Charlottetown to look for Dr. Ward, after visiting the Cuthberts to warn them. As usual, Anne and Gilbert were lost in each other's gaze as they talked about the racist scandal in Avonlea. 

The result fell quickly: Mary was condemned to die. Both Gilbert and Bash and the Cuthberts were disconsolate. Gilbert was angry with himself for feeling weak and powerless in the face of death when those who were losing a mother and wife were Bash and Delphine. He wondered about his vocation. One afternoon when he came to get the Cuthberts to come and see Mary, Anne decided to walk with him. She saw him so vulnerable, so sad and tried to comfort him by telling him what she thought and how much she trusted him:

"Gilbert, I hope you will never have to announce this kind of news again but I think it would be impossible. People need a doctor to take care of them, to really care, to be accommodating. I'm sure you'd make an excellent doctor.

He looked at her without being able to believe that she was the one who was consoling him. He wasn't used to anyone really caring about him and reminding him how incredible he was. His confidence had been shattered, but Anne's words echoed strongly within him. 

Arriving in front of Gilbert's house, and noticing that the boy was crying in silence, Anne decided to do what she wanted to do that distant time when John Blythe died; and she embraced him. Gilbert was a little paralyzed for a few seconds and put his hands on her to hold her as tightly as possible. It was his rock; the umbrella that protected him from the storm. The physical contact sounded if it had aroused feelings that both of them wanted to hide. As they parted, Gilbert looked at her lips without really realizing it, and they entered the house in confusion.

At the end of April, they had decided to get together with many neighbours to celebrate Easter with Mary. They sang, put flowers on the girls' hats, smiled, ate... They enjoyed themselves before the departure of the woman. A few weeks later, at the end of May, Mary was gone. All the spring light had gone. The sky began to cry beside them during the funeral. 

In mid-June, in preparation for the annual county fair dance, Miss Stacy and Mr and Mrs Lynde gave a dance class to the students. They had to form groups of six divided into two lines made up of three people. Anne was in the same line as Charlie and son Lynde and Gilbert danced with Diana and Jane Andrews. When they started to dance, the music playing on Moody's banjo started to play, everything went away but the two of them. As much as they danced with other people, they couldn't take their eyes off each other. And in a moment of madness, eager to take her hand, as their lines crossed, Gilbert turned her over to dance with her. And Anne smiled, gladly. They touched their hands tightly as if letting go was impossible. They saw nothing but each other. Gilbert found her more beautiful than ever as Anne drew a parallel between him and Mr Darcy. When they had to bow, a veil was pulled from Anne's eyes as if she realized that the possibility of liking him was not so absurd in the end. At the end of the dance, they stared at each other even though they had all left. They were confused, on the surface. Anne ran away at full speed. 

That night when he returned home, Gilbert asked Bash while cooking carrots the difference between attraction and love. His brother, thinking he was talking about Winnie with whom he was still corresponding by letter. He knew that he was in love with Anne and he thought her ambiguous relationship with Winniee was silly, especially since he had invited her and her parents to the fair. 

"Gilbert, attraction is one thing but it can never be as strong, powerful and beautiful as love. He said to her. 

Gilbert had misinterpreted Bash's phrase and thought that what he felt for Anne was only an attraction like a trace of the past that had been amplified by the hug and the dance. 

The dance had questioned the boys on the issue of reproduction. Charlie told Anne that the fact that she is intelligent could be harmful if she wanted to have children. As they left the church, the girls forced Anne to ask Gilbert. It was very embarrassing. Gilbert tried to explain to them that on a medical level it was not like that without going into the details, and left. It was the first time they had met after the storm at the dance. The conversation on that subject unconsciously created forbidden thoughts in his mind. 

Anne, on his side, was as confused as he was. She couldn't stop thinking about him, about his chin, about how he looked at her during the dance, how he touched her hand strongly. She knew that he liked her but she didn't know if the feeling was mutual and as deep as she thought. After taking a light blue dress from Diana, he decided to go and consult a psychic..:

"Madam, I am in the depths of despair. Will someone fall in love with me? Will someone like me? Will my hair be darker as it grows?" 

"Mmh. Someone is already deeply in love with you. When he looks at you, his eyes fill up like a full cup to explode. He is tall, dark and a good dancer." 

Anne's excitement was shattered when she saw Gilbert arrive with a woman clumsily holding his arm, next to his parents. Bash had warned him how everything would be considered by Avonlea who would think they were together. In fact, they were not officially together, but friends at least according to Gilbert; but the parents' involvement showed that for Winifred, they were dating and he was thinking about marriage. The Roses had accepted Bash without any problem. And Gilbert introduced the Cuthberts, while they were waiting for the results of the cake contest in which Anne was participating. The redhead came running, and he looked at her secretly. She looked so beautiful in her bluish dress, her long hair down with her straw hat. She had a slightly strange, sad look on her face. 

"Here's Anne, my... my classmate and family friend." 

The results of Anne's cake were catastrophic because she had made a mistake and put liniment instead of vanilla. She ran away crying about the failure and about Gilbert and Winifred. Without thinking twice, Gilbert left Winnie to catch up with Anne. They looked at each other intently as Gilbert consoled her over the cake without knowing that this was not what Anne was most worried about.

"I wish you to be very happy together." 

And he went with all speed to hide to cry leaving him alone without understanding anything. 

During the night, Gilbert had fun dancing with Winnifred although he found it a bit difficult not to look at Anne, but he managed to put all his attention on the blonde. At the moment of the dance, he held Anne in one hand while Winnie in the other, it was very uncomfortable. Anne, on her side, was with her friends, she danced a little with Charlie Sloane who liked her even though Anne didn't give him the time of day. 

An hour later, Josie Pye came crying while the girls were talking. Billy Andrews, her suitor, had harassed her, wanting to force her to kiss him even though Josie did not want to. He laughed as she felt humiliated. And nobody said anything. Anne, in a rage, went to Billy and confronted him. He looked at her with contempt but also with a certain amount of desire; he could no longer say that she was ugly. Everyone looked at them and kept their mouths shut. Josie's father was angry with his daughter for not agreeing to kiss her boyfriend when he demanded it. 

Anne was furious and angry at people's behaviour. Since when did a man know women's desires better than they did? Why didn't anyone act while Josie was being harassed? Anne, determined to change things, went to school at night to write an article entitled ' _'What Is Fair_ ”. She printed it and put it in the weekly newspaper. 

The consequences were not long in coming. The Andrews and the Pye were full of hatred and anger against Anne, as that text prevented their plans to marry into the family. The Avonlea board was dismayed to see the freedom and new ideas reported in this newspaper. They decided to censor the press because, according to them, women did not have the right to open their mouths for their rights. The boys and Miss Stacy were angry with Anne for not consulting them before they caused the deluge. They were all fighting:

"Guys, we're not fighting for the good stuff. It's not about what Anne said, it's about the fact that she didn't consult us. I mean a level playing field, trust, loyalty."

"Ah, why do you have an opinion on gender equality?" 

"The same opinion I would have had surely yesterday if you had taken the time to ask."

"Interesting, because I could swear I saw you negotiating for a piece of land... I mean wife." 

He looked at her perplexed, hurt. Is that how she saw him? Is that really what he was doing with Winnie? 

Miss Stacy spoke to Anne in private and decided to punish her, firing her from the newspaper because of the men on the board. The next day, after much reflection, Gilbert defended Anne in front of her colleagues, explaining her position in a more peaceful way. When Anne came back, the girls jumped up to embrace her. The girl with the fire hair told them that she had an idea, that of demonstrating and expressing her discontent about the censorship of men. They demonstrated for freedom of expression by challenging the views of those in power. They made noise. Josie, after getting angry with Anne and listening to her a few days later, came to the march after rejecting Billy and reflecting on what had happened to her. To get revenge, the men decided to burn down the Avonlea school by stealing the press. 

The following days took place at Miss Stacy's home where the students reviewed the Queens exams. Anne and Gilbert sat down together and talked about their projects:

"I have the feeling that I will never leave in peace until they change the status quo."

"And I am more than a country doctor declaring death sentences." 

Gilbert asked for his pen and forgot to return it. They were disturbed when Moody evoked Winifred:

"So Gilbert, do you intend to ask her for her hand?" 

"She is so beautiful and seems so romantic." exclaimed Ruby. 

Gilbert was not so keen to talk about Winnie, he did not understand or did not really want to understand because everyone had been talking to him about marriage since the fair. Anne felt bad but did not want to show it. 

On exam day, while the others were in Avonlea, Gilbert took his exams in Charlottetown. With Anne's pen. She had to ask the inspector for one. They had a few hours to do exercises in various subjects such as geometry, mathematics, English, Latin, chemistry, physics and Canadian history. After finishing, the children gathered at the ruins to celebrate. They drank incessantly enjoying their holiday and the new stage of their lives that was approaching. 

Gilbert was invited to the Rose house in Charlottetown. They had a refined dinner, and then Winnie's father invited him.:

"If you marry my daughter, I can pay for your studies in Paris at the Sorbonne University so that you can become a prestigious doctor. I give you my blessing if you choose to spend your life with Winnifred. Cigar? “

The boy couldn't believe it. The Sorbonne was his dream even though he didn't know a word of French, and he knew he didn't want to be a country doctor; but to marry Winifred? He was totally lost thinking about Anne and after returning to Avonlea, he went to the ruins where he found her. She was dancing in the moonlight. Her hair was loose, fanned by the light of the fire. She turned and smiled, and he couldn't take his eyes off her. She was the most beautiful jewel he had ever seen. She looked like a mermaid, a dryad, a fairy, a supernatural being. He was in love and he knew it for that moment. 

The magic was broken when he called her to talk and explain his thoughts. He told her Mr Rose's proposal, from the Sorbonne, of the possibility of becoming what she so longed for. She, being half drunk, asked him what was stopping him from marrying Winnie:

"One thing." He whispered as he looked at her, eyes deflecting to her lips with ever-present desire. 

"I don't understand... We can't... You and I... You want to go to Paris... And I... Am... Pirate... “ 

Gilbert took his stutter as a rejection. He left with tears in his eyes while the girls stayed with Anne. The redhead had decided for him, she was going to marry Winnifred. And that's what he told Bash the next day although he didn't want to admit that he found it so hard to imagine giving his mother's ring to any girl other than Anne. 

For her part, Anne, after having reconciled with Diana about a misunderstanding with Jerry, got out of bed declaring :

"I'm in love with Gilbert Blythe." 

She warned Marilla and Matthew about his feelings and they told him to fight for her love and not to let Gilbert marry someone else knowing that their feelings were mutual. Anne went home to meet Hazel, Bash's mother, and when she saw that Gilbert was not there, she wrote a letter

**_"Dear Gilbert,_ **

**_I'm sorry, I was confused before. I'm not anymore._ **

**_I love you._ **

**_Anne._ **

**_PS: May I please back my pen?"_ **

Unfortunately, Gilbert did not see the letter. When they were building the school again, he decided to move away from the rest, after Moody and Billy told him about Winifred. On the way, he found the wooden planks they had painted for the demonstration, the ruins of the old Story Club with its epitaph, and shells. And he noticed everything. She could not be with anyone else but her. It would have been unfair for Winnie to marry him, not being loved as she deserved. She took a shell in his pocket. First thing in the morning he went to Charlottetown to clear things up with Winifred. She was disappointed, she had started the preparations for the marriage and the move in Paris by giving her orders like cattle. She made him promise not to say anything about his break-up for two weeks to give him time to go to France without ruining his reputation. Gilbert accepted. 

  
  


The results of the entrance exams in Queens had arrived. They were all together at Miss Stacy's house. Anne was talking to Diana while Gilbert watched her in hiding; she caught his glance. She was determined to understand and have an answer from him to her letter. As much pain as it caused. 

"Guys, here are the results." 

"Anne and Gilbert tied for first place!" They both looked at each other with a smile.

Anne approached him and asked if he had anything to say. He did not understand what she meant, he congratulated her even though he felt that it was not what she expected. He was controlling himself not to hug her, to kiss her. He couldn't take his eyes off her lips. 

At the end of that afternoon, while Anne had gone with Matthew to try to find her friend Kakwet in the horrible institutes for indigenous children; Gilbert went to Green Gables to declare his love, and could not hide anymore. Not finding her, he took Marilla's shopping list, and wrote with her pen.:

**_"Dear Anne,_ **

**_Since we are parting ways, perhaps forever, I feel I must unburden my heart. You are the fond object of my affection and my desire. You, and you alone, are the keeper of the key to my heart. Please don't be alarmed. I don't expect your favour, but I can't, in good conscience, not reveal myself. I'm not engaged, nor will I be, unless it's to you Anne, my Anne with an E._ **

**_It always has been, and always will be, you._ **

**_With love,_ **

**_Gilbert_ **

**_PS: Good luck at Queens. “_ **

After writing it, he felt the need to climb the ladder to put the letter on his table. He saw his room; it was as big as he imagined; with flowers, shells; it was as big as she was and that made him fall in love even more. 

When Anne returned, Marilla had warned her that Diana had come to declare that Gilbert had gone to Charlottetown. She was angry that there had been no response from her. When she saw the letter, she tore it into a thousand pieces by throwing them out of the window, before running to try and read the letter. Of course, she got the wrong message. 

The following week everyone had to leave for university. Anne was in a boarding house in Charlottetown with her friends, except for Diana who was struggling to make her parents understand that she wanted to be in Queens and not in Paris. Gilbert, for his part, had managed to get into the University of Toronto. Being too close to the smokers, Gilbert decided to change his place on the train to Charlottetown and crossed paths with Diana and her father. While Mr Barry congratulated him on his engagement, the boy explained that he was not engaged. A few minutes later, an angry Diana came to sit with him shouting her four truths..:

“ So you simply never bothered to speak to Anne about any of this?! you've had every opportunity! For years! Admit it. You've been smitten with Anne ever since she first came to Avonlea and smashed her slate over your head! there have been countless clues! And you certainly can't deny you were beguiled by her dance practice, even though it turns out you were secretly cording a mystery debutante, Who you had the temerity to step out with at the fair with no word of warning. Then you show up at the ruins after exams, and demand to know how Anne feels about you, and give her all of 30 seconds to decide her entire future! and worst of all, you callously ignored The letter Anne wrote to you, even though she told you **_SHE LOVED YOU_ **!" 

"What letter ? Diana, **_WHAT LETTER_ **?!" 

In Charlottetown, Anne was running desperately after meeting Winifred. She didn't understand why the blonde was treating her like this and wished her all the happiness in the world for her marriage. As she was leaving, Winnie called her.

**_"Gilbert didn't tell you anything?"_ **

**_"Tell me what?_ **" 

She arrived at the boarding house, quickly packed her suitcase and decided to go to Avonlea to see him, to tell him that she loved him and that if she wanted to, it was not too late for the two of them. When she suddenly saw him, he was breathless, not only because of the career he had just made, but also because he saw her in adult women's clothes. Anne was wearing a beautiful royal blue dress that Marilla had made for her. Her chignon had been undone and only the top part was left tied, leaving her locks full of beautiful curls in the open air. She looked like a queen. When she came down the stairs and stood in front of Gilbert; he could not help himself. He gently touched her face with his hand as if she were a little porcelain doll. And when he saw that she was looking at him intensely, without being able to stop herself, he kissed her. He kissed her with sweetness and strength. Anne couldn't believe what was happening either. I never thought that she would have her first kiss one day and above all that it would be with Gilbert Blythe. Marilla's phrase came back to her mind:

**_"When someone loves you Anne, then you'll be kissed"_ **

Gilbert turned away from her needing to know what she meant and if she really loved him as much as he loved her. Anne pricked her wrist to make sure that what had just happened was true

 **_"Ouch!_ ** **_I have a very good imagination, so I just had to be sure this is real..."_ **

**_"Anne, I have to know. Do you truly have feelings for me?"_ **

She looked at him for a few seconds while he waited for her answer. And she kissed him again. They kissed with more passion, with hunger, with thirst, with need. They kissed as if they needed to do it to breathe, to live, to exist. Three accumulated years had vanished at the touch of her lips. And the bell rang. Gilbert walked away again, telling her that he had to go to Toronto, but he was determined to fight for this story, and even more so after those kisses. He proposed to her to be a mail-order bride and she gladly accepted. Diana had managed to convince her parents, and Mr Barry arrived a few seconds later with the car carrying the suitcases that Gilbert had forgotten on the train. Before leaving, Gilbert jumped out of the car, looked at her and walked over to her and kissed her again. This time he was smiling, happy as ever, and so was she. As the car drove away, he watched her from afar, watching her smile. 

The Cuthberts came soon after with a book in hand. Despite having been a little disappointed earlier in the day by not having the answers they wanted, they had found the gift that would make Anne the happiest. Indeed, a few months earlier, when going to the church in Halifax to find out about her parents, Anne learned that Bertha and Walter Shirley were Scottish immigrants and had no relatives in Canada when they died. She decided to send a letter to find out if she would have any living family in her parents' home town in Scotland, and the answer was no. Seeing their daughter's hidden sadness, Marilla and Matthew decided to visit Mrs Thomas, the first woman to take care of Anne during the first years of her life. She was living in the Shirley house again. She was old, cold and had some memory problems. Inside the wardrobe, they found a book full of dust _Language of flowers_ , which turned out to be a gift from Walter to Bertha. He had drawn his wife's portrait on the back cover. Anne discovered that her name was actually spelled with an E as she liked it, that her mother was a teacher and above all that she was a redhead with freckles, just like her. With tears of happiness in her eyes, she embraced her adoptive parents and Marilla confessed to her that she was her life's desire. 

At nightfall, while Diana was sleeping, Anne wrote her first letter to Gilbert..:

**_"Dear Gilbert,_ **

**_I look like my mother._ ** **"**

She told him her whole story and with a smile on her face she went to sleep marvelling at the incredible day that had ended. In not even twenty-four hours she had become a bride with the love of her life, shared a room with her best friend and had something that belonged to her late parents. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes: scenes from Much ado about nothing (1600) : act.I, scene 2 / act.4, scene 5. 
> 
> Song: Chi mi na morbheanna / The mist covered mountains *


End file.
